Nothing
by inmyeyes
Summary: A missing R/T scene from "Hammers and Veils".


A.N. : This is kinda like a missing R/T scene from _Hammers and Veils. This is a result of depression from the lack of Tristan and me being doped up on meds. Heh. _

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**Nothing  
by inmyeyes******

He smiled tentatively at Paris as she stormed by and got a scathing look in return. Shaking his head, he picked up a piece of plywood and trudged back to the area of the house he was working on. When he bent over to set down the piece of wood on the ground, he heard a low whistle come from behind him. He turned his head and saw Louise looking at him and licking her lips. 

"Like what you see, Louise?" he smirked. 

Her grin widened lasciviously but before she could say anything, a loud voice cut in. 

"Louise!" Paris yelled, giving her friend a pointed look. "Get to work!" 

Louise and Tristan shared a look before she reached for her hammer and joined Paris. Laughing under his breath, Tristan ran a hand across his forehead, wiping off his sweat. As he did so, he saw a flash of fluffy pink a few metres in front of me. Curious, he edged closer until he realized that the owner of what seemed like a pink fluffy hammer was Rory. 

For a few minutes, he stood there and just watched her; the look of concentration as she hammered the nail in, the frustration when she couldn't get it right and the glint of determination in her eyes. 

He couldn't help the words that tumbled out of his lips. "Need any help, Mary?"

Startled, she gave a shriek of pain as she accidentally hit her finger instead of the nail. His reaction was immediate; in two strides, he was standing in front of her with her hand in his as he examined the bruised skin. Gingerly, he blew on the reddened skin. 

Rory stood frozen as she felt his warm breath hit her skin. Her eyes travelled downwards, stopping when they hit his bowed head. A random thought crossed her mind and she instantly chided herself. '_You will not think about how soft his hair looks.'_

When he looked up and their eyes met, confusion ran rampant through her as she recognized the look of concern in his eyes. But as quickly as she saw it, the expression left and was masked with nonchalance. He gave a small smile and took a step backwards. 

"Sorry about surprising you like that," he mumbled. 

She smiled and slowly drew her hand away from his, conscious of the fact that her cheeks were probably tinged pink. "It's all right."

In the short awkward silence that followed, her mind dimly registered that he looked good. She noticed how the wifebeater clung to him nicely and saw the thin strip of skin that was exposed by the low-slung faded jeans and how the streak of dirt across his cheek made him even more appealingly. Shocked at the boldness of her gaze on him, she tore her eyes away but not before she saw the amusement in his eyes, telling her that he had noticed how she was checking him out. 

"I didn't know you were gonna be here," was her lame comment.

He just shrugged. "I've been volunteering for a while now."

"Don't tell me… since fourth grade?"  When he just gave her a puzzled look, she muttered, "Never mind." and brushed back a strand of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail. 

"Don't move," he warned.

"Huh? What? Why?" 

Biting his lip and hoping that she wasn't going to slap him or something like that, he laid a hand on her cheek and with his thumb, he wiped away the grease that had marred her cheek. Her gaze moved upwards and he saw the surprise in her eyes. He just smiled, enjoying the feel of her smooth cheek underneath his fingertips. Again, Rory just stood there unmoving and held her breath as she realized exactly how close he was standing to her. His proximity was unnerving.  

"You just had some grease there," he explained, moving back again and feeling utterly nervous for some reason.

"Oh." A pause before she went on, "Thanks."

"Nice hammer," he commented, grinning. 

She laughed, bending down to pick up her mother's creation. She held it up and matched his grin. "My mom insisted that I bring it."

"Well, it has the distinction of being the prettiest hammer here," he said, trying not to smile.

"Yeah, Sally's feeling a little self-conscious though."

"Sally?"

She nodded, her smile broadening. "Tristan, meet Sally the hammer."

He couldn't help but laugh. "The pleasure's all mine."

"Would you like to hold her?" Rory asked, a devious look in her eyes. 

"No, no… it's okay. Sally shouldn't be seen with the likes of me, anyways."

Rory arched a brow at his words. "Aww, now you've hurt her feelings."

"She'll get over it. She'll find a nice boy who's more her type."

"Yeah, I guess she will," Rory agreed. 

There was yet another round of silence and out of nowhere, he was reminded of what had happened. 

_"He's not my boyfriend. I hate him."_

"Well, I guess I should get back to work."

"Yeah, we should." 

He nodded and smiled. "Don't hurt yourself, Rory," he teased. 

"I'll try not to."

"Good." He spun on his heel but took only one step before turning back to her. "Rory?" 

She looked up. "Yeah?"

He let his gaze drift to the ground before gathering his nerve and meeting her eyes. "I just wanted to apologize. For the PJ Harvey thing." He tried to smile. "I went about it in the wrong way."

"Apology accepted," she said. 

  
"Thanks," he answered, relief making his smile brighter. 

He had taken three steps away from her when she called out to him. "Tristan!"

He stopped, took a deep breath and then turned to face her. "Yeah?"

_'I'm sorry too. About what I said. I don't hate you.'  The words were at the tip of her tongue but she changed her mind at the last minute. She shook her head. "Nothing."_

'_Nothing indeed,' he thought wryly as he walked away. That seemed like a good word to sum up whatever it was between them. Nothing. _

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End file.
